Ammunition feed box and belt for machine guns



Aug. 12, 1930. R, C, @QUPLANE)A l 1,772,826

AMMUNITION FEED BOX AND .BELT FOR MACHINE GUNS Filed April 4, 1927 Higham E Enupland' www* 'Patented Aug. 12, 1930 FFICE RICHARD c. coUPLANnjorv DAYTON, onto AMMUNITION FEED Box AND BELTv non MACHINE AGUNS I Application led April 4, 1927; SeraliNo. 180,862.

(GRANTED UNDER THE ecm or MARCH e, i883, AsAMENnED'ArnILo, 192s; 37o o. e. 757')l The invention described herein, if patented, may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes Without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

The subject of this invention is an ammunition feed box and belt for machine guns.

The limitations imposed by the mounting of machiney guns on aircraft and the necessity for rapidity of loading` has led to the development of special types of ammunition boxes or magazines. Boxes of this character which are provided with cartridge feeding apparatus frequently become jammed and are accordingly objectionable.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide a light, water proof, inexpensive and expendable container which will serve both as a shipping carton and as a magazine and which may be quickly opened to permit loading of the gun.

With the foregoing and other objects inv view, my invention resides in the novel arrangement and combination of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed may be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

' A practical embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

F ig. 1 is a longitudinal sect-ional view of an ammunition box constructed in accordance with the 'invention; A

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 2 2 of Fig. l

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the support.

Referring to the drawings by numerals of reference:

The ammunition box is in the form of a rectangular carton of water-proof card board or fiber vboard and is composed ofthe sides 5, bottom 6 and a sectional cover, the smaller section 7 arranged to overlap and be detachably secured to the larger section 8 by adhesivel connecting it thereto. The smaller section Z7 when removed provides an opening the cover through'which the ammunition 9 may be taken out.

The ammunition whichis placed inthe box before attachment o f the cover is carried in a beltk Hl0 which may bev eitherof fabricor metallic disintegrating'link construction. 4 The end or end link ofy the belt c'arries atab 11 whichis provided to facilitateintroduction of the belt into the feedway of: the gun. In

the present instance the tab is iiexible to enable the end ofthe b elt to be positionedl at the sideof the box adjacent the feedway of the gun. An arrangement of this character, in

addition to being cover, asV will be nvenientifor opening the described hereinafter, is

especially favorable when metallic belts are employed as the upper layer of the belt may be inserted in the gun along a practically straight line.

When the ammunition is in the box and the larger section 8 of t the tab is extended he cover secured in place along the outer surface of said section and is preferably fixed thereto as by glueing. The put in place and gl which it overlaps.

smaller section 7 is then ued to the larger section Opening the box may be accomplished by pulling the tab which will disengage the smaller section of the cover and enable the belt to be withdrawn.

The box may be placed in position adjacent the feed way of the gun by dropping it into a support l2 Secured tothe gun and having a spring 13 for firmly retaining the box.

It is intended that the box may be loaded and sealed at the arsenal and when empty may be thrown away.

I claim: l. Incomibinatio n, an ammunition feed box comprising a container having a cover consisting of overlapping sections detachably secured to each other and a belt having a flexible tab extendi ng between the sections 0f the cover and detachably secured to one of said sections.

2. In combination, an ammunition feed box comprising a c ontainer having a cover consisting of overlapping sections detachably secured to each other, and a belt having a flexible tab extendi 0f the cover.

11g btWeen the sections 3. In combination, an ammunition feed box comprising a container having a sectional cover and a belt Within the box and having an end extending between theV sections of the cover.

4. In combination, a container, a closure for the container having a Vdetachably secured portion7 and a flexible element carrying the contents of the container With an end extending through the closure adjacent to the detachable portion whereby movement of the element to Withdraw the contents of the container will detach the portion of the closure.A 5. In combination, a container, a closure 5 for the container having a detachably secured portion and a flexible element carrying the contents of the container and housed therein to be Withdrawn in one direction, said element having an end extending through the closure 0 adjacent to the detachable portion and in a direction Vopposite to the direction of With drawal.

6. The combination with a machine gun having a feed channel, of an ammunition'box supported adjacent to the feed channel, a detachably secured closure for the box, and an ammunition belt housed in the box and having an end extending through the closure and directed away from the feed channel.

:o RICHARD C. COUPLAND. 

